Virginia's enormous presidential heads are getting new park

Howard Hankins owns 42 presidential heads that would be the centerpiece of a development he envisions on his property in James City County near the Croaker exit off Interstate 64. New tours at The Ruines at Hankins Folly will kick off Memorial Day weekend.

Howard Hankins, 68, operates a commercial construction recycling business, turning concrete, steel and wood into reusable products.

Howard Hankins’ job was to demolish the presidential heads, including Abraham Lincoln's, and haul the debris away to make room for the next tenant at the old Presidents Park, but he couldn't bring himself to do it, so he took them away intact.

Alyse Hancock, a brand architect and consultant based in Los Angeles, and Howard Hankins have embraced the presidential busts as they are, calling the new project The Ruines at Hankins Folly.

Forty-two giant concrete presidential heads that were saved from a long-closed tourist attraction now reside at a private farm outside Williamsburg and will be viewable by the public again beginning Memorial Day weekend.

WILLIAMSBURG — Time and the elements have not been kind to the old men in the field.

The traumatic move from their former home — holes were punched in their heads so an excavator could lift them onto a trailer for the ride a few miles up Interstate 64 — did not do them any favors, either. Occasional vandalism has added to the woe.

Though cracked and crumbling and most definitely worse for the wear, the 42 giant busts of U.S. presidents sit on a fresh bed of mulch, awaiting a better day.

Part of Howard Hankins’ motivation is to make better use of the presidential busts he salvaged from the wrecking ball but also a desire to do "something meaningful" with the property that has been in his family since the 1600s. Here, he stands next to the bust of George Washington.

And if Howard Hankins, who rescued the collection from a tourist attraction that closed more than a decade ago and stashed them on his property, can realize even a fraction of what he envisions, better days might start Memorial Day weekend, with a sort of relaunch toward a refashioned future.

The presidents would be the centerpiece of a sprawling development Hankins would like to build on his 600-acre property in James City County near the Croaker exit off Interstate 64: There could be a 3,000-seat amphitheater for concerts and shows (as well as, possibly, an adjacent recording studio), a winery, a museum, an expansive playground for kids with special needs, a trade school for young people, an equestrian center, programs for veterans, event space for weddings and other gatherings, lodging, dining and glamping. A ride in a tethered balloon could give visitors a bird's-eye view of the presidents.

In a way, the property is a blank canvas at this stage, and the overall concept is in the design phase. Hankins welcomes ideas — "I bring them in every day," he says — and business partners.

The concrete-and-metal busts, created by Houston artist David Adickes, originally were the heart of Presidents Park, an attraction near Water Country USA that opened in 2004. However, the park experienced financial problems and was closed in 2010 and auctioned off in 2012. The sale did not include the busts.

Part of his motivation is to make better use of the presidential busts he literally salvaged from the wrecking ball — his job was to demolish them and haul the debris away to make room for the next tenant at the old Presidents Park, but he could not bring himself to do it, so he took them away intact. He is also driven by a desire to do "something meaningful" with the property that has been in his family since the 1600s.

"For the legacy of it all," said Hankins, 68, who operates a commercial construction recycling business, turning concrete, steel and wood into reusable products. The piles of concrete, representing miles of torn-up highway, and mountains of mulch would be relocated to make room for the development, he said.

Ever since their move, the presidential busts — up to 20 feet tall and weighing several tons each — have remained a curiosity, attracting news media for updates and visitors for periodic tours, as well as occasional trespassers who sneak on the property for a look at the collection in a field more than a half-mile from the nearest road.

Hankins has long floated the idea of a large-scale development around the presidents, but previous attempts never gained traction. In an effort for a fresh start, he hired brand architect and consultant Alyse Hancock last year to help him begin anew.

"The best business decision he ever did was to save these heads," said Hancock, who is based in Los Angeles and whose role with the project evolves with its changing needs, "because we have something that no one else has."

Hankins and Hancock have recast the collection and embraced the presidents as they are, calling the new project The Ruines at Hankins Folly. They have adopted the philosophy behind the Japanese art of kintsugi, of which acceptance of imperfection is a cornerstone and the notion that nothing stays the same forever is instrumental.

"Their weirdness," Hancock says, "is their character."

New tours will kick off Memorial Day weekend — registration and details will be available this week at www.theruines.com — though the place is a long way from being thrown wide open to the public.

Though they are being appreciated as "ruins," the busts need to be structurally stabilized so they can be moved a few hundred yards to a new site within the proposed development. The relocations could begin in the coming months, Hancock said.

As for the entire development project, she and Hankins have been in communication with James City County officials, but the process is in the early stages.

When the presidential heads were moved from the old Presidents Park in Williamsburg, holes were punched in their heads so an excavator could lift them onto a trailer for the ride a few miles up Interstate 64.

"While the property owners have asked about the county's various zoning ordinance requirements, nothing official has been filed or otherwise submitted to the county for review," wrote Paul Holt, the county's director of community development and planning, in an email.

The concrete-and-metal busts, created by Houston artist David Adickes, originally were the heart of Presidents Park, an attraction near Water Country USA that opened in 2004. However, the park experienced financial problems and was closed in 2010 and auctioned off in 2012, though the sale did not include the busts.

Hankins’ construction company performed the site work for the park and maintained an office there, so he was tasked with disposing of the busts. Instead, he acquired the heads and figured out a way to quickly transport the sculptures to his farm for safekeeping.

"I’d been with them awhile," Hankins said of the sculptures. "I put them here to see what I can do with them."

There are 42 presidents represented, from George Washington through George W. Bush. (There is only one bust of Grover Cleveland, though he served two non-consecutive terms as the 22nd and 24th president). Money has not been available to add busts of Obama, Trump or Biden.

Hankins has poured considerable money into the property and is now hoping for others to join him in bringing the project to fruition.

"He has a large investment here," Hancock said. "To get this done, it's going to take a bigger team ... (and) we’ve got a really good team coming together to get Howard's vision."

At this stage, plans are so tentative that there is neither an estimated price tag for the project nor a timeline.

"It's a long process," Hancock said.

Howard Hankins owns 42 presidential heads that would be the centerpiece of a development he envisions on his property in James City County near the Croaker exit off Interstate 64. New tours at The Ruines at Hankins Folly will kick off Memorial Day weekend.

Howard Hankins’ job was to demolish the presidential heads, including Abraham Lincoln's, and haul the debris away to make room for the next tenant at the old Presidents Park, but he couldn't bring himself to do it, so he took them away intact.

The concrete-and-metal busts, created by Houston artist David Adickes, originally were the heart of Presidents Park, an attraction near Water Country USA that opened in 2004. However, the park experienced financial problems and was closed in 2010 and auctioned off in 2012. The sale did not include the busts.

When the presidential heads were moved from the old Presidents Park in Williamsburg, holes were punched in their heads so an excavator could lift them onto a trailer for the ride a few miles up Interstate 64.

Alyse Hancock, a brand architect and consultant based in Los Angeles, and Howard Hankins have embraced the presidential busts as they are, calling the new project The Ruines at Hankins Folly.

Part of Howard Hankins’ motivation is to make better use of the presidential busts he salvaged from the wrecking ball but also a desire to do "something meaningful" with the property that has been in his family since the 1600s. Here, he stands next to the bust of George Washington.

Howard Hankins, 68, operates a commercial construction recycling business, turning concrete, steel and wood into reusable products.

Bill Lohmann (804) 649-6639

[email protected]

@BillLohmann on Twitter

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